Table 4.

Application of four routine clinical MRI sequences in the evaluation of the Brain Atrophy and Lesion Index (BALI)

BALI category	T1WI	T2WI	T2-FLAIR	T2*GRE
GM-SV	✓	✓*	✓–	✓–
WM	✓	✓	✓*	✓–
PV	✓	✓	✓*	✓–
BG	✓	✓	✓	–
IT	✓	✓*	✓–	–
GA	✓	✓	✓	✓
Others	✓	✓	✓	✓
Microhemorrhage	–	–	–	✓*

Notes: ✓*: most suitable; ✓: suitable; ✓–: unsuitable but possible; –: impossible.

Abbreviations: BG, lesions in the basal ganglia and surrounding areas; DWM, deep white matter lesions; GA, global atrophy; GM-SV, gray matter and subcortical lesions – subcortical dilated perivascular spaces; IT, lesions in the infratentorial regions; PV, periventricular white matter lesions; T1WI, T1-weighted imaging; T2WI, T2-weighted imaging; T2-FLAIR, T2-weighted fluid attenuation inversion recovery sequence; T2*GRE, T2*-weighted gradient recalled echo sequence.